This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art. This section also provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.
As a result of environmental and other concerns, plastic containers, more specifically polyester and even more specifically polyethylene terephthalate (PET) containers are now being used more than ever to package numerous commodities previously supplied in glass containers. Manufacturers and fillers, as well as consumers, have recognized that PET containers are lightweight, inexpensive, recyclable and manufacturable in large quantities.
Blow-molded plastic containers have become commonplace in packaging numerous commodities. PET is a crystallizable polymer, meaning that it is available in an amorphous form or a semi-crystalline form. The ability of a PET container to maintain its material integrity relates to the percentage of the PET container in crystalline form, also known as the “crystallinity” of the PET container. The following equation defines the percentage of crystallinity as a volume fraction:
      %    ⁢                  ⁢    Crystallinity    =            (                        ρ          -                      ρ            a                                                ρ            c                    -                      ρ            a                              )        ×    100  where ρ is the density of the PET material; ρa is the density of pure amorphous PET material (1.333 g/cc); and ρc is the density of pure crystalline material (1.455 g/cc).
Container manufacturers use mechanical processing and thermal processing to increase the PET polymer crystallinity of a container. Mechanical processing involves orienting the amorphous material to achieve strain hardening. This processing commonly involves stretching an injection molded PET preform along a longitudinal axis and expanding the PET preform along a transverse or radial axis to form a PET container. The combination promotes what manufacturers define as biaxial orientation of the molecular structure in the container. Manufacturers of PET containers currently use mechanical processing to produce PET containers having approximately 20% crystallinity in the container's sidewall.
Thermal processing involves heating the material (either amorphous or semi-crystalline) to promote crystal growth. On amorphous material, thermal processing of PET material results in a spherulitic morphology that interferes with the transmission of light. In other words, the resulting crystalline material is opaque, and thus, generally undesirable. Used after mechanical processing, however, thermal processing results in higher crystallinity and excellent clarity for those portions of the container having biaxial molecular orientation. The thermal processing of an oriented PET container, which is known as heat setting, typically includes blow molding a PET preform against a mold heated to a temperature of approximately 250° F.-350° F. (approximately 121° C.-177° C.), and holding the blown container against the heated mold for approximately two (2) to five (5) seconds. Manufacturers of PET juice bottles, which must be hot-filled at approximately 185° F. (85° C.), currently use heat setting to produce PET bottles having an overall crystallinity in the range of approximately 25%-35%.
Unfortunately, in some applications, containers are often exposed to a wide variety of manufacturing, filling, transporting, and using forces that vary greatly. Moreover, many of the containers of today much reflect a certain consumer appeal without sacrificing structural integrity and performance. In light of the increased costs of materials and transportation, there is an ever present desire to reduce materials used and the overall weight of the container. Consequently, however, any major revisions of these containers can lead to the need for revised manufacturing and transportation solutions, which can quickly consume any savings realized through container redesign and reconstruction. Therefore, in some cases, it is desirable to achieve improvements in container design that do not require the redesign and associated retooling of the existing manufacturing systems and distribution networks. Therefore, there is a need for ultra-lightweight, thin-walled containers capable of surviving existing distribution and filling systems. The principles of the present teachings provide a thin-wall container having vertical seams for topload support and standing ring seam to support the container, thus creating a rigid frame to support the container as it moves through these traditional storage, distribution, and filling systems.
Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.